1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a portable cooler and, more particularly, to a multifunctional cooler assembly that provides means for sitting.
2. Prior Art
Individuals who go to the beach for swimming, sunbathing and the like frequently carry various items to enhance their enjoyment of beach activities. Such items may include a beach chair, beach umbrella, blanket, towels, radio, an insulated cooler for beverages and food products and various personal items. These items are usually bulky and difficult to handle and control while walking to and from the beach. Some efforts have been made to provide carrying bags and the like for some of the above-mentioned items. However, there is still a substantial need for improved devices for use by beach goers to facilitate various utilitarian items being carried to and from the beach.
It has become increasingly popular to picnic in places where a table or other support surfaces are not available. Typically, a cooler or other container is carried to the desired location. This can be very exhausting if the desired location is inconvenient to roads or other means of transportation.
Known folding chairs constructed of tubular aluminum with nylon or canvas covering material or the like are well known. These portable chairs have the virtue of being very light to carry and provide an inexpensive means for comfortable reclining. Many conventional chairs require the occupant to sit near the ground and are sometimes provided with short legs. To spend the day at the beach, conventional practice involves using and carrying a comfortable chair, a portable cooler for beverages and lunches, and a container to hold towels and other small articles.
This conventional practice is relatively expensive and cumbersome to carry. Known folding chairs have the disadvantage of not possessing any storage facilities which can both hold small articles and thermally insulate perishable foodstuffs and bottled beverages. A number of alternative means have been proposed to overcome some of the difficulties with conventional chairs. For example, several chairs have been devised with storage capability for beach or camping.
A variety of tackle box chairs and beach chairs exist and while each serves a specific purpose, the alternative means provided require insulating and carrying means, and are sometimes difficult to access without standing. Many of the alternatives available suffer from tipping or require the occupant to sit very low to the ground, and some are quite cumbersome to carry. Still others are provided with a back prop of such a design as to cause the occupant serious injury if suddenly collapsed.
Problems with prior devices include not providing a unified umbrella, not providing food supporting table surfaces of selectable height and not providing wheel and handle transport means. Furthermore, the prior art lacks the advantages of a caddy device, and otherwise fails to satisfy a need in the art for a versatile, durable, compact and transportable cooler/table structure which can be manufactured relatively inexpensively.
Accordingly, a need remains for a caddy-like multifunctional cooler assembly, which overcomes the above-noted shortcomings.